Louis van Gaal, while talking to the press before Manchester United’s FA cup 5th round tie against Preston North End—a game that they went onto win 3-1 last night, made it clear that buying an efficient midfielder next English summer would be the club’s priority. In retrospect, the Red Devils’ midfield has looked good although it has not been able to produce satisfying displays this season. Van Gaal would not be happy with his midfielders’ ineptitude to control pace and tempo of the game. Does that, however, mean the Dutchman needs to buy another midfielder before the start of next season? ....Read more...

Man United have quietly moved into Third Place in the Premiership, but the new vice-captain Michael Carrick believes that the club will in no way be satisfied to end the season below Chelsea and Man City at the end of the campaign.

“The signs have been good in recent weeks,” Carrick said on ManUtd.com. “We were bitterly disappointed not to win last week [at Aston Villa] but we beat Newcastle and now have two big away games. They will be a good test for us to see where we are at. ....Read more...

Atks that the moment Chelsea and Manchester City seem to be pulling clear of the chasing pack in the title race, but Manchester United are still well in touch in third place, despite some very unconvincing performances.

The United legend Paul Scholes is convinced that his old team can still play a big part in the race for the top, especially when the top two restart their Champions League campaigns. Scholesy said: “If United win their next two games, I wouldn’t be surprised if they do what Liverpool did last year – go on a great run, a big run, and put pressure on the top two. ....Read more...

I am not having a go at the new Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal here. In fact, I welcome the fact that the Dutchman has a good football brain and is willing to try new things. And that three at the back system worked for him as manager of the Holland national team and could work for us as well.

But for tomorrow’s trip to Burnley, I am with Paul Scholes who said in a report by The Independent that playing three at the back was just not working for United at the minute. ....Read more...

If you were to go by the words of Andrea D’ Amico, an Italian Football agent, then Manchester United could be the next destination for one of the most-sought-after midfielders in world Football, Arturo Vidal. Mind you, the aforementioned agent is not a delegator to Vidal, however, he is said to represent other Juventus players and has strong dealings with the Juventus hierarchy. In an interview to Sky Italia, Andrea was quoted saying on 31st July that, “I’m convinced that Vidal will certainly leave”. ....Read more...

There is no doubt that the new boss of Manchester United is his own man. Louis van Gaal even has something of a tyrant’s reputation, so there has been a sort of nervous wait for those United legends who had been working behind the scenes at Old Trafford recently.

Ryan Giggs, of course, was already sure of his recent future, having been appointed as the second in command to van Gaal, after impressing in his short temporary stint as the manager when David Moyes’ unfortunate time in charge was brought to an early halt last season. ....Read more...

It will be a sensational transfer swoop for Manchester United if it comes off. The Chile and Juventus midfielder Arturo Vidal, nicknamed `the warrior` because of his work rate and never say die approach in the centre of the pitch, could be coming to Old Trafford.

27-year old Vidal is wanted by some of the biggest club in Europe, including Real Madrid apparently, but according to a Daily Star report, he has told friends in Italy that his preferred destination is the red half of Manchester. ....Read more...

So Manchester United fans, it appears that the summer transfer business is off and running with the capture of Anders Herrera from Athletic Bilbao. There should be a lot more to come during the summer transfer window, but for now let’s take a look at what Louis van Gaal has got for his money.

Herrera was born in Bilbao, meaning he is a Basque which makes him eligible to play for Bilbao, who do not allow anyone else to play for them, which is why they fight so hard to keep their top class players because it is so much harder to replace them. ....Read more...

Maybe Louis van Gaal has taken a lesson from the disaster that was David Moyes and his time at Manchester United. It was always going to be a tough transition after the best 26 years in the history of the club under Sir Alex Ferguson, so I can understand why Moyes felt it was best to cut a lot of ties and start with a clean slate.

Unfortunately, as we know all too well, it did not work. Many of the old guard, like Ryan Giggs and Rio Ferdinand, did not take kindly to the break with recent history, and that is why the new manager is carefully considering how to harness past glories while pushing on into the future. ....Read more...

The Manchester United legend Paul Scholes is glad that a manager with Louis Van Gaal’s experience has replaced David Moyes at the helm, but doesn’t think the Dutchman will find it easy to lead the club to glory.

“He’s been at the biggest clubs in the world but he has a major job on his hands at Man United,” Scholes said. “It’s a massive task and there’s a big gap to fill to catch Man City, Chelsea and Liverpool next season.

“United are a long way behind. If Van Gaal gets them to the Champions League, it’ll be a start.” ....Read more...